• McLaren MP4-12C represents ‘pure McLaren’; from unique
engineering to bespoke design where everything is for a reason

SURREY, England - September 9, 2009: The McLaren MP4-12C is revealed as the first in a range of
high-performance sports cars from McLaren Automotive,

the independent car
division based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, England. The
12C, and future models within the range, will challenge the world’s
best sports cars, benefiting from the expertise and virtuosity of the
McLaren Group.

Twenty years of sports car design, engineering and production combined
with inspirational success in Formula 1 have driven Ron Dennis, McLaren
Automotive Chairman, to announce his plans for the ultimate line-up of
technology-led and customer-focused performance cars for the 21st century.
The rules in the sports car world are about to be re-written.

Through a rich modern history, McLaren’s automotive division has
already built the world’s most critically acclaimed supercar, the
McLaren F1 (1993-1998) and the world’s best-selling luxury supercar,
the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren (2003-2009). McLaren Automotive now looks to
the future with a new range of revolutionary sports cars.

“It is a long-held dream of mine to launch a range of high
performance sports cars that set new standards in the industry,” said
Dennis.

“We began designing and building cars for aficionados of
thoroughbred sports cars almost 20 years ago. Incorporating the leading
edge technologies that the McLaren Group has built up within its various
companies, I believe we are now perfectly placed to open up this new
chapter in McLaren’s history as well as play a part in the
regeneration of high-tech manufacturing in the UK and global automotive
environment,” he concluded.

At its heart, the McLaren MP4-12C features a revolutionary carbon fibre
chassis structure, the Carbon MonoCell: the first time a car in this market
segment is based around such a strong and lightweight racing car
engineering solution and the first time any car has ever featured a
one-piece carbon fibre structure.

This step change in sports car design means that the 12C introduces new
standards not just in handling, ride and outright performance, but also
safety, economy and practicality in an already competitive sector.

Martin Whitmarsh, Team Principal of McLaren’s racing team
highlighted the integral part that McLaren’s motorsport and road car
experience played in developing the 12C: “McLaren has for years
offered a potent mix of race car and road car technologies. This
combination of McLaren’s performance heritage, and future demands on
what is expected of high performance sports cars in the 21st century, gave
us a head-start when we embarked on this project. The 12C, and future
variants, draws on the spirit of Formula 1 and delivers real-world
technological advances.”

The first car from the new company, the McLaren MP4-12C, is a high
performance two-seat mid-engine model in the ‘core’ sports car
market segment for cars costing between £125,000 and £175,000. The 12C is
pure McLaren, featuring no carryover parts from any other car, and will be
produced by McLaren in the UK. It goes on sale through a dedicated,
worldwide retailer network in early 2011.

“McLaren is already a car maker with maturity and experience,
having produced iconic cars such as the F1,” said Antony Sheriff,
McLaren Automotive Managing Director.

“The next step was to construct a range of pure McLaren high
performance sports cars that are true to the company’s philosophy and
reflect our position as an absolute technology and performance leader. So,
when we embarked on the 12C project, we wanted to re-write the rules of
sports car design. Indeed, the 12C offers performance and technology that
exceeds that of the world’s most expensive and sophisticated
supercars, while competing in a much more accessible market segment. And to
achieve this result, we designed every component from scratch to meet the
extreme goals of the 12C and avoid any compromise.”

“Forget what you know about sports car companies, McLaren is
different,” he concluded.

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